


Quite the Love Story

by Peter164



Series: Alternate Universe [14]
Category: Video Blogging RPF, jacksepticeye, markiplier - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Stripper/Exotic Dancer, Bi-Curiosity, Candles, Crossdressing Ethan, Dinner, Fluff, Holding Hands, M/M, Pole Dancing, Power Outage, Stripper Mark Fischbach
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-02
Updated: 2017-06-11
Packaged: 2018-10-13 19:16:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10520112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peter164/pseuds/Peter164
Summary: Jack ends up at a strip club somehow or other. He's planning on hating every second, and he almost does. Of course he doesn't think he's supposed to fall in love with the strippers.





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makin' my way downtown, walkin' passed, faces pass to the strip club.

Jack regretted everything. He shouldn't have asked what girls do on a Girls'-Night-Out. He shouldn't have told Signe about his curious nature involving other guys. He shouldn't have agreed to come with her and her girlfriends tonight. He shouldn't have stayed quiet and just let it all happen. The nudity on stage was almost grotesque, he just wanted to stay by the bar and drink his Irish heart into oblivion. Maybe if he got blackout drunk he'd be able to actually enjoy himself instead of hating being born. Everything was awful and he wanted to go home. Home didn't smell like beer and cigarette smoke, home didn't have enough bass to make his teeth rattle, and home did not have naked men on metal poles. And he was one of maybe 4 men here. An older man walked out on stage, fully clothed (thank god), he must've been the owner or something.

"Sorry to be a bit of a cockblock, but we have a very special performer for you tonight." He announced like he was announcing a wrestler, "He got his start right here on this stage and he climbed his way straight to the top. And now he's back just for all of you, our treat, Mr. Iplier."

He pronounced it _ee-plea-air_. Signe grabbed his hand and pulled him over to the stage, pulling him into the front row and making him sit next to her. Jack was expecting a ripped, blond, white guy to show up in a speedo that looked like the French flag with a name like his, he should've known that expectations rarely meet up with reality. He was met with tan skin and black hair that looked like Jack could dig his hands in it and never run out. Dark eyes and stubble, and even still fully clothed. And he wasn't even white, he was at least partially Asian. He had on a white dress shirt, black slacks, and even a tie. His sleeves were rolled up to show off his forearms. Jack could feel himself salivating. Iplier slowly pulled his tie off, exposing his neck under the collar. Jack shifted in his seat making Signe look over at him. 

"Look at you, enjoying yourself after all." She teased as Iplier slowly unbuttoned his shirt.

"Under any other circumstances, you would receive a proverbial punch to the face, but I am too invested to do you the honors at the moment." Jack didn't break eye contact with the beautiful piece of ass in front of him. They might've been a bit louder than they meant to be because embodiment of perfection bent down and hooked his tie around Jack's neck. Everyone gasped as he yanked the Irishman forward and whispered in his ear. 

"See something you like?" He growled into Jack's ear. Jack whimpered at the deep baritone and Iplier yanked the beer he was holding out of his hand and poured it over his mouth, getting so very little into his throat. Instead the liquid dripped down his chest and onto the floor. Jack was blushing much too hard now. The stripper bent over him again, making the girls squeal. Despite being outwardly sexy, he simply told him to meet up by the bar and he'd buy him another drink before returning to his preformance. 

~*~

Jack had watched until the end, his pants getting horribly tight at the sight of black spandex over the performer's ass. He never even took off all his clothes. He was currently standing at the bar, waiting to see if he would actually do as he said. Soon he saw the Asian man walking up to him. He had donned a pair of glasses and a t-shirt and jeans. Jack was blushing as he walked over and sat next to him. He looked much shorter than he did on stage, but Jack decided not to bring it up. 

"Hello." He smiled, "I'm Mark."

"Hi. I'm Jack." He squeaked.

"I believe I promised to buy you another beer after I poured your other one all over myself. I'm still not sure why that gets everyone so excited, but it gets me paid so I don't care very much." Mark shrugged. Jack nodded. Mark ordered a beer and a water.

"You worried about getting drunk?" Jack asked, mostly just trying to make conversation.

"Yes, but probably not for the reason you think. My mom's Korean and a lot of Koreans don't have the necessary stuff in their bodies to process alcohol. Somehow that gene won over my dad's German ones so if I drink alcohol I will be sent to the ER. I take it you're Irish?" Mark asked as their drinks were set on the bar. Jack nodded.

"Born and raised in good ol' Ireland. I lived in Brighton for a little while, but ultimately moved here with my now ex-girlfriend. She's the one that dragged me here and no that is not the reason she's my ex." Jack explained.

"Well if you're straight sorry for doing that whole thing back there. Targeting men usually gets a better response from the audience." Mark was so polite and sweet. It surprised Jack, but he wasn't exactly sure why.

"No that was all just fine. I don't actually like, know what my sexuality is. For some reason that was enough for Signe to bring me here against my will." Jack laughed.

"Thank god. I would feel so bad if you didn't want anything to do with men and I ended up coming onto you." He grinned. Jack was falling in love with every word, "So uhm, do you have any pets?" 

"No. I really want a dog though. Do you?" He knew Mark was trying to keep the conversation going, and Jack was happy to oblige.

"I have a golden retriever named Chica. She is the pride and joy of my life and she is like my child, I love her very much." Mark explained, "And as much as I love Five Nights At Freddy's, I swear she is not named after the chicken in that game. All my friends think that, but it's not the reason."

"I've never actually finished a Five Nights At Freddy's game, but I have played all of them." Jack said.

"I have finished every game on the hardest difficulty, including the impossible Golden Freddy mode in Sister Location." Mark looked into his lap, "I probably have too much time on my hands. But if time is what it takes to hold onto my title as the King, then time is what I will give." 

Jack laughed, "I take it you like video games."

"That would be an understatement, but yes." He grinned. The man who introduced Mark was calling him over. Mark told him he'd be right over and took a marker from the other side of the bar, he quickly scribbled a phone number on Jack's arm and got up to talk to the man. Jack blushed once again and looked at the black scribbles on his arm. He held his face in his hands before pulling out his phone. He added the number into his contacts list, quickly standing to tell Signe that he wanted to head home, he was tired. She called him an Uber and waved him outside, she didn't have a car here so she couldn't really drive home at all, much less drunk. 

The second Jack put his head on his pillow he was asleep. It felt like he slept for a few seconds, but when he woke up sunlight was streaming through the windows and his phone said it was 10 in the morning. He decided to send a text to Mark, maybe find out if he meant to give it to him because he liked him.

_Hello, it's Jack. We were talking last night._

_Good morning. Meet me at Wildebeests for morning coffee?_

_Be there in half an hour?_

_You got it ;D_

Wildebeests was a weird little hipster cafe downtown, but the coffee there was incredible. Jack quickly showered and got dressed before walking down there. Mark smiled at him, coffee in hand. Jack ordered for himself before beginning to pull out his wallet. He looked up and saw Mark handing the barista a bill. 

"I could have paid." Jack said as they were sitting down at a little table to wait for his order.

"I know, but I did so you didn't have to." Mark explained, "How'd you sleep?"

"Alright, how about you?" Jack asked.

"Very well, thank you. Well, besides the fact that Chica woke me up at 3 in the morning to go outside and then proceed to attack a dandelion she found in the yard." Mark said. Jack laughed, they called out his name and he went to grab his coffee, "Mind if we walk while we drink?"

"Not at all." Jack smiled. They walked side by side while Jack tried to figure out if this was a date. They discussed favorite games, their families, what Jack did for a living, boring getting to know you questions like that. Soon Jack was stretching out his fingers, the cold morning was making the blood leave his knuckles. 

"Cold?" Mark looked worried about him.

"Just my hands. I'm used to it, don't worry about me." Jack shrugged him off. He was not expecting Mark to lace their fingers together and continue on with their conversation. Once again, Jack was blushing because of Mark. 

"So, are you doing anything tonight?" Mark asked.

"No, why?" Jack looked up at him.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to have dinner with me? Like a date?" Mark asked, "I mean we did only meet last night, but I really want to get to know you better and isn't that kind of what dates are for?"

"Uhm, sure. We can do that. Did you have somewhere in mind?" Jack asked. Mark nodded.

"You don't have any allergies do you?" Mark asked, Jack shook his head, "Okay. I'll pick you up around 7 tonight? Is that okay?"

"Oh, yeah. That'll work." Jack's toes were curling with his nerves. 

"Okay. Let me know if that ends up changing. I'm flexible." Mark said, he groaned, "I meant that I can work around a plan change. Not that I can bend in weird ways, but I can do that too. Not that I'm-"

"I get what you mean." Jack laughed.

"Good. I must be hanging out with Tyler and Ethan too much. They never miss an opportunity to make fun of me. For the longest time Tyler had his phone set so when I called him it played that Magic Mike song that sounds like a burping frog." Mark looked so hurt, but Jack ended up busting up laughing, "I made him change it. I don't know if he actually did though."

Jack continued to laugh, feeling so bad for him but not able to help himself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross dressers, almost dinner dates, and dogs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost had to mark this as ageplay. But I held myself back, and it's still not going straight to hell. I mean this is still going to hell, just not quite as deeply. I write way too much ageplay as is, but if you want some ageplay septiplier, then I will happily deliver.

It was 6 at night, Jack was standing in front of his closet trying to decide what to wear when he suddenly realized he had no idea where they were going or how formal it was. Luckily, he was not an absolute airhead. He quickly texted Mark and asked what he should wear.

_Clothes preferably_

Jack didn't have a person to give his bitch face to, so he settled on his phone.

_I'm sorry I'll stop. No dress code. Whatever makes you feel comfortable. Jeans and a t-shirt, a tux, thigh highs and daisy dukes. Doesn't matter._

Jack didn't quite know what to say or think in response to the last option. After a few more minutes Mark sent him another text.

_That made it sound like I want you to show up wearing thigh highs and daisy dukes. I swear I don't want you to unless you like doing that, and you probably won't believe me because of my job. I only say that at all because of a friend of mine._

Mark sent an Instagram screenshot of a boy with bright blue hair taking a selfie aimed down at his body, he was wearing a black sweater with a galaxy in the shape of a cross. It was slipping off one of his shoulders, exposing his collarbone. He had on a black flower crown and the tiniest pair of denim shorts so light they were very nearly white. He had a pair of black socks that topped at his upper thigh, leaving a bit of open space between them and his shorts. His feet were out of frame. Another guy with brown hair and glasses was kissing his cheek. The caption read "Selfie 'cuz i'm feelin supa cute and Tumblr as fuck today. I think someone agrees" followed by a winking emoji face and several hashtags. Jack's immediate response was to cuddle the little blueberry as hard as he could

_My point was that you can wear whatever you want and it won't matter. Just make sure you're comfortable_

_Thank you for answering my question in a short and concise way that did not trail off at all._

_You are a sassy piece of shit, you know that?_ Mark sent after a few more minutes.

_Thank you ;P_

Jack put his phone down and decided to actually get dressed. He picked out a white button down shirt and a pair of skinny jeans. It was comfortable and a nice happy medium between casual and formal. He finished getting ready as quickly and efficiently as possible. He sat and played Overwatch for a while until it drifted closer to 7 o'clock, when he started to just scroll through his social media. His heart started pounding, he hadn't dated in a while now. He started thinking about it and it suddenly dawned on him just what a strange situation he'd found himself on. He was going on a dinner date with another guy. That was something he never thought he'd do. Sure he was beginning to admire them from afar more and more, finding himself falling in love with the entire concept of dating another man, but it was never something he thought he'd actually end up doing. And it wasn't just another man, it was a male stripper. He'd googled him earlier and discovered he was actually pretty famous in this weird niche of an occupation, and even branching out into other things like modeling and teaching pole dancing lessons and even voice acting in a couple video games. Jack was about to go out on a dinner date with a male stripper. And he was sweet, and caring, and polite, and funny, and sexy as hell, and everything Jack could ever want. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard a knock at the door. Of course Mark stood in the doorway. Who else would it be? Jack wasn't sure why it surprised him.

"Ready to go?" Mark asked, he was almost vibrating with apparent nerves. Mark seemed to get the same idea for clothing. He was in a soft blue button up shirt (it did look less dressed up than Jack's though) and jeans.

"Whenever you are." Jack really needed to get this blushing thing under control. Mark smiled and let him walk outside. They walked down the steps of Jack's apartment and started towards the parking lot. Mark gently brushed their fingers together, Jack laced their hands together and walked with him. He was trying to be cool about it, but his heart was beating a mile a minute in his throat and his organs decided to form a mosh pit. He was so distracted that he started walking to the left side of the car. In general, he was pretty good at remembering the switch, but not today. He corrected himself, but not before Mark noticed his mistake.

"You wanna drive? Seems a little weird, but I'm not stopping you?" Mark shrugged.

"No, no, no, no. I don't even have a license. It's just that in Ireland the driver is on the right side. I usually remember, just not now when I'm trying to make a good impression." Jack rambled on without thinking about his words.

"Am I just too distracting?" Mark laughed a little. Jack laughed too, but Mark was absolutely right. Jack wanted nothing more than snuggles and kisses whenever he saw Mark, until he remembered the smell of his cologne and sweat and the sound of his voice vibrating in his ear. Then he wanted to bite and grind and be turned to mush by lips and teeth and fingers, "So, I sort of didn't tell you exactly where we were eating for a reason. I didn't want to scare you off before I even got a chance. And you're welcome to say you don't want to if you don't feel comfortable, I know of some other good places to go and I promise I won't say a word against you if you don't want to-"

"Mark, where the hell are we eating?" Jack rolled his eyes, "You make it seem like I'm about to sign a 50 Shades of Gray style contract or something." 

"I was planning on making dinner myself and eating at my house." Mark fidgeted.

"Oh."

"But like I said, we can go anywhere else if you're not comfortable. I just don't like eating out, I always think my food is better. And that sounds like I'm bragging, I'm not, I promise, I just-"

"Mark, long as you aren't cooking snails and crocodile stew, and you aren't hiding someone in your basement, I'll eat at your house." Jack smiled. Of course his face was bright red, it almost always was when he was with Mark. 

"Okay. We'll do that." Mark nodded and started up the car, "Sorry if I babble, I tend to do that when I'm nervous and I haven't really dated for a while. And just because I'm a stripper does not mean I have a girl and guy on each arm that I come home to every night and have a big ol' orgy with. I've heard every single comment on the matter, don't even try."

"If it makes you feel any better, I've never dated a guy before." Jack decided to come clean.

"Never?" Mark asked, Jack shook his head, "Have you ever done anything with a guy before?"

"Besides fantasize and admire, no." He shrugged. Now it was Mark's turn to blush.

"Well, I hope I'm a good first pick."

Jack giggled and looked down at his lap. Mark reached down and took Jack's hand, shyly. Mark hummed and smiled.

"I like holding your hand." He said. Jack buried his face in his free hand, "I like making you blush too. You look cute when you're blushing."

Jack let out a quiet squeak, making Mark giggle. They pulled away and drove to Mark's house, still hand in hand. They talked about silly stupid things, laughing, neither one letting go of the other. Eventually Jack brought up how insanely massive his muscles were, making Mark laugh.

"It's from pole dancing for four years. It's literally the only exercise I do." Mark told him, Jack denied that that was true, "Well, I have a practice room in my house if you want to try it out. Just saying, I don't think you'll be able to hold yourself upside down with only the power of your thighs."

"You can do that?" Jack asked.

"You'd be surprised. Maybe another time I can teach you a thing or two." Mark winked, Jack melted. He was picturing it all, the moves Mark would show him, Mark adjusting his hands and hips, the praise when he did a good job, the smell of sweat and the sound of heavy breathing. He wanted it now, but he didn't know if he'd want it as much when the time came. He was still nervous, afraid. It embarrassed his to hold Mark's hand, the most basic acts of affection on the planet. 

"Okay." Jack agreed, "Another time."

This was already moving faster than he really felt comfortable with, he couldn't handle much more so quickly. Maybe Mark would slow down a little and let him process, or maybe he'd keep barreling forward all night and let Jack take it in when they parted ways. Either way, Jack was excited. Sure he was far out of his comfort zone, but he had never felt like he was in any real danger. Mark was there to guide him, to hold his hand in the dark, literally it seems. They pulled into Mark's driveway.

His house wasn't massive, but it was on the larger side of the spectrum. It was no mansion filled with antique jewelry or anything like that. It was simply a nice house. Mark welcomed him inside, the pair were greeted by a big golden retriever trotting into the entryway. Mark's face lit up when he saw her. He knelt down and scratched behind her ears.

"Chica. Yes I missed you too, don't worry." Mark told his dog, his voice dropped to a stage whisper, "And I brought the cute boy that I've been talking to all day. Be nice to him, okay big girl?"

She calmly wagged her tail and walked over to Jack when she was finished with Mark. She sniffed at his clothes and hands before letting him pet her. Why was his face always cherry red? She started jumping up to his shoulders.

"Baby girl, calm down." Mark pulled at her collar, Jack nearly choked at the words in his ears, "This is Jack, not Tyler. I don't know how you got those two mixed up, but only Tyler lets you jump up on him, remember?"

Jack smiled at the man and his dog, trying not to imagine those pretty lips on his ear calling him his baby girl. He tried to think his way out of it, but his mind was already in the gutter. Ice cream, cold, sweet, comforting, melty, melting down Mark's chin. Sports, manly, testosterone, sweaty, Mark looks so sexy when he's sweating. The Ring, scary, little girls, tapes, screaming, Mark could make him scream even louder. Eventually he went straight for the cliche naked grandma to try and pull himself back up. In that amount of time, Mark had looked at him and noticed that he was daydreaming.

"Hey, still with us. You seem distracted." Mark asked.

"I'm fine, just thinking." Jack smiled. He was good at pretending. Mark put his arms around his neck.

"Well, follow me into the kitchen so I can finish up dinner and you can tell me what thoughts were captivating." He smiled, and Jack was pulled back up to clean thoughts faster than he could smile back. Soft, sweet, kind. Something much more, and much better, than something for sex. Mark lead him to the kitchen and pat on the counter as a place Jack could sit. He could make it, all he had to do was focus on his eyes, his smile, the way he fluffed his hair with his hands when he was busy. The pretty things, the innocent things. Yeah, he could do this just fine.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our specials are power outages, frightened puppos, and existential games of Life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [In case you've never seen a taffy puller before.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7tlHDsquVM)

Mark was gently swaying his hips as he sang "Once Upon A Dream" quietly to himself. Jack was in awe at the sheer amount of talent that was in this man's body. He could dance, he could sing, he could hold himself up sideways on a metal pole, and from the looks of things he could cook too. If Jack had ovaries they'd be long gone by now. 

"You like Sleeping Beauty?" Jack asked. Mark laughed.

"I don't know, I guess. I babysat the other day and he made me watch it with him 3 times. Needless to say, the song is now stuck in my head permanently." Mark told him, "Anyway, what ere you thinking about that sent you off into dreamland?"

Jack's stomach felt it was put into a taffy puller. He swallowed with difficulty and felt blood rush to his face, "Nothing important."

Mark rolled his eyes and walked over to him. He placed his hands on either side of Jack, essentially pinning him down without ever touching him. He was staring directly into Jack's face.

"Your face couldn't possibly be any redder, you know that right? Now don't be embarrassed, tell me what's on your mind." Mark backed down, gently taking Jack's hand with both of his and bringing it up to his lips, but making no contact yet.

"It's weird. Even for me it is, and I'm the one that thought it up." Jack warned.

"You underestimate the amount of weird things I've not only heard but actually been involved with. You wanna know a secret?" Mark asked. Jack nodded, not sure what else to do, "I wasn't babysitting a kid. I won't say who, because it's not my place to say that, but someone that I've been friends with for a while recently told me that he is what is called a little. It means that he regresses to a little kid when he gets stressed out. His usual caretaker was going out of town for the day, so I took care of him. Can't leave a 2 year old alone all day, even if they're in a 20 year old's body. I had to bottle feed a 20 year old, I can handle weird."

"Uhm, my thoughts were sort of along those same lines, but maybe not quite that extreme." Jack was biting his lips, he felt like he was trying to swallow his heart back into his chest.

"You want me to take care of you?" Mark tilted his head.

"I want to be your baby girl." Jack blurted out. Mark smiled and kissed his knuckles. When Mark didn't say anything, Jack was sure he messed everything up. He had fallen too hard and too fast and now he was going to be left broken hearted. It was his own fault, he should have pulled back on the reins a little, he should've slowed down, thought things through. Mark pulled out his iPhone, probably to delete Jack's number. He tapped away for a few seconds before handing it over to Jack. He almost didn't want to look, but he did. 

**Baby Girl**

Big, bold, black letters. Impossible to ignore. Jack looked below the contact name and saw the texts he had sent to Mark in little gray boxes on the left side of the screen. He hugged Mark tightly. He felt Mark's strong arms wrap around his waist and hug him back. Jack closed his eyes and absorbed him in. He smelled so different instead of sweat and sex, it was campfire smoke and mint. Jack wanted Mark like a child wants cake at a birthday party. He wanted to taste him, see if his lips tasted like the rest of him smelled. Mark hummed quietly and carefully pulled away. They sat like that for much too long to be accidental. Arms around each other, noses not quite touching, Jack could feel Mark's warm breath on his face. He thought he was imagining things, Mark slowly moving forward, closer to him, until at least he felt Mark's nose brush against his.

A timer started ringing loudly, pulling them apart.

"I should go check that." Mark smiled and walked back over to the stove. He was only a few steps away, if even that, but it felt like miles. Jack wanted to get up and hold him again, just to feel close again. He stayed back. The room felt cold after Mark left and took his body heat with him. They heard a bolt of thunder and the lights flickered, "Fuck. Hey Jack, do you know if it's supposed to storm today?"

"No idea why?" Jack asked.

"Because my power is finicky and if it starts storming, it's getting a little more romantic than originally intended." Mark started getting out various candles and a lighter. He plugged in his phone and checked the weather reports. He started playing a video, Jack couldn't see it but he could hear it.

"Massive local storms are leading to minor flooding. Anyone south of Cherry Street should evacuate to higher ground as soon as possible. Anyone south of Amber Drive should remain indoors until emergency personnel deem it safe. This is not expected to happen until late tonight, so find somewhere to stay the night and wait it out. All is expected to be safe by tomorrow morning. Expect power failure and prepare in advance. If you need a light source, stay tuned for tips and tricks." A news anchor announced, Mark turned off his video. Seconds after he finished talking Jack's phone beeped at him alerting him to the same information that he just heard. Jack held up his phone.

"Well, isn't this just perfect. Fuck you, mother nature. This couldn't have waited until tomorrow? Guess who's south of Amber drive?" Mark grinned sarcastically at Jack, "Don't worry, powers the only thing we need to be concerned about and I've learned how to get around that."

Mark took a glass out of the cupboard and filled it with about half an inch of water. He claimed it was just precautionary, in case they needed more light than the candles. Although Jack didn't understand how staying hydrated would help with light, despite its importance. He trusted Mark with whatever he had planned. 

"I'll light a couple candles, we can eat and just do our best to have a good time. If power goes out, we go from a nice dinner to a candlelit dinner, no big deal. I have an extra room you can stay in and you can borrow some clothes of mine. Or we can try and pull an all nighter and I can take you home when we can go outside again. Whatever you want." Mark sighed as he started putting food on the table, "Ethan and Tyler might come up, depending where they're at right now. I'll do my best to keep them out of our way if you want me to."

They sat at the table together, Chica walking over and laying down between them for maximum table scrap potential. They talked about silly stupid things, they asked questions, they answered questions. Mark was just cleaning up when the lights flickered. This time they didn't go back on, luckily they had the candles already lit so they could still see at least a little. Chica whimpered and walked over to Mark's legs. She began headbutting him, begging for attention.

"Hey, big girl. I need to put dishes in the sink, okay? Go see if Jack will pet you." He told his dog. She continued to whine and beg, "Fine, give me just a second and I'll pet you. But after that you're going to have to go see Jack."

He finished rinsing off plates and cups before reaching down and picking her up. Her 4 legs were sticking straight up in the air and her tail was sagging just barely side to side. He scratched her stomach and brought her over to Jack. He set her back down on the ground and pat on Jack's thigh. He held back a whimper at the contact. Chica jumped up onto his lap. Mark pet her one more time before going back to cleaning up. Jack had offered to help, but Mark had turned him down. Mark brought his refrigerated food out to the cold garage to keep it from spoiling.

"So, you what do you wanna do while the power's out?" He sat down next to Jack once more, "We could read, play board games, play heads-up, I have playing cards, but I only know how to play Go Fish, we just talk, I'm up for whatever you want."

"I don't have any idea. We could start with a board game." Jack shrugged. Mark smiled and nodded. He stood up and walked over to a little closet that Jack hadn't even noticed in the adjacent living room. He started reading off games he had. They settled on The Game of Life, for reasons neither one really knew beyond it was a decent time waster. The brought a pack of cards out, for when they finished or got bored. Mark waved him into the living room, which was still dark except for the ambient light from the candles in the kitchen, and helped him find the couch. He came back quickly with the glass of water and a metal coaster. Again, filling Jack with confusion. He set the coaster down on the coffee table and set the glass of water on top of it. The coaster lit up, the water making it fill the room with a soft, ambient light, like the light was on in the other room. It was still dark, but they could see perfectly fine and there was no weird shadows on the walls or anything.

"I used to use the flashlight on my phone instead of the coaster, but it drained the hell out of my battery. The coaster came with a cup that I got for my birthday, it has a little crown in the bottom that lights up, it's just more efficient." Mark explained. He blew out the candles in kitchen and came back to sit next to Jack, they set up the pieces together and passed out the different things they each needed. Jack picked the little green car, and Mark picked the pink one. They stuck little blue pegs in each one and set off on their journey. Mark reclined back on his much too comfortable couch, draping his arm over the back behind Jack. It wasn't really uncomfortable having his arm there, it was more just weird to be on the receiving end of the action. Chica jumped up and rested her head on Mark's knee. When the game forced him to get married, Jack had a bit of a crisis over whether he wanted a blue peg or a pink peg. 

"Is it weird that this game is pissing me off a little? What if I want a green peg to match my car? Or a purple peg? How dare this children's game limit my choice in peg to put in my plastic car?" Jack expressed to Mark.

"This game is horribly limiting. I want an option to study 4 years of biomedical engineering, work as a biomedical engineer for a year, and then become a stripper. As for your sexuality crisis, we have a couple options. I can go get a green Sharpie so you have a green peg to match your car, you could throw in a blue peg because you are literally on a date with a blue peg right now, or you could take the heteronormative route and take a pink peg." Mark explained, Jack laughed at his devotion to getting him whatever his heart desired. It was flattering.

"You were a biomedical engineer?" Jack asked once he stopped laughing. Mark nodded.

"Yeah, I have a degree hanging up in my studio downstairs. It is currently collecting dust because I hate it but feel the need to display it because I payed way too much money for a piece of paper and the knowledge to build bridges that I will never build." Mark grinned, "Did you decide what peg you want?"

"Just because I don't want to make you get up for me, you will be my husband for this game and I will take a blue peg." Jack decided on, placing the peg into the little slot on his car. 

"Now my turn to question which color I should have. I usually like blue pegs, but it seems like my current blue peg likes it when I call it a pink peg. I'm not totally sure yet, so what do you think I should do?" Mark looked at him questioningly. Jack realized he was talking about him and his weird desire to be called his baby girl. He buried his face in his hands, hiding his blush. 

"I think," He mustered up the courage to speak, "That your blue peg is always a blue peg, unless it belongs to you. So does the peg next to you belong to you or not?"

"Does it want to?" Mark asked, his voice low and centimeters away from Jack's ear. He blushed brighter and nodded. Mark hummed and pulled away. He placed a pink peg in his car, "And there's my precious baby girl along for the ride."

Jack smiled, his knotted up stomach relaxed and spread warmth through his body. He was Mark's baby girl, no one else's. He still wasn't sure why he loved it so much. Maybe it was because he was always expected to be the possessive one, so he never knew what it felt like to be possessed by someone else. Maybe it was just a guy thing. Maybe he never had an opportunity to be someone else's baby. Whatever the reason, he was enjoying it, and Mark seemed to be alright just rolling with it. By the time the game ended, neither cared who actually won. They had fun and actually learned about each other while playing. Mark spoke French, German, and a little bit of Korean. Jack was fluent in Korean, he had a girlfriend that lived in Korea. Mark knew morse code and almost constantly was tapping something into Jack's thigh. He wrote up a little alphabet chart for him and taught him the basics of how it worked. Jack teased and said he was figuring out what he was saying. Mark shrugged and continued to tap on his leg. Jack giggled and began scribbling down the tapping. He ended up with _-.- .. ... ... / -.-- --- ..-_

Mark rested his head on Jack's shoulder while he worked. So far he had ki. Two s's made kiss. Jack felt his blood pounding through his veins. The next word had 3 letters, _you._ Jack blushed and looked over at Mark, who'd suddenly gone shy. The Korean tapped something different onto his leg. L-A-P. His eyes said he was asking a question. Jack's face was burning as he squirmed onto Mark's lap, he helped Jack adjust so they were both comfortable with the new position. Chica was sadly kicked out of the snuggle party, but she curled up in she corner of the couch and fell asleep. Mark was smiling, bashfully, but it felt nice. Actually, it felt wonderful to be like this. Intimate, but still innocent enough to make Jack comfortable. Mark's arms were around his stomach, pulling him in closer, his chin resting quietly on his shoulder. Mark sighed and closed his eyes. They stayed like this for a few more moments, too close to be bothered with a kiss.

"You wanna play Go Fish?" Mark asked in almost a whisper. His mouth was right next to Jack's ear so he stayed quiet. Jack rolled his eyes and started to climb off, only to have the grip around his waist tightened, "No, like this."

"We can't play go fish like this, Mark." Jack pointed out. Mark turned him around so Jack was straddling him.

"Now we can." Mark grinned at his own genius. Jack laughed and shrugged. Mark picked the cards up from the table and dealt them out. He set the pile of extra card next to them. And they played Go Fish with Jack in his lap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fucking dog keeps forcing poor green bean into such sexual places. I greatly apologize.
> 
> And you can actually do that thing with the glass of water. I know this, because I've done this. Coaster and all, because my dad owns this coaster/cup set thing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bedtimes and Go Fish

Mark won Go Fish. He'd just finished packing his cards back up when he brought one hand up to Jack's face and the other hand around his waist. Jack purred and nuzzled into Mark's hand.

"Look how pretty my baby girl is." Mark smiled. Jack didn't want to let go of Mark to bring his hands to his face, so he just tilted forward and buried his face in Mark's shoulder. Mark pressed his lips to Jack's hair. Jack whimpered. Mark had indirectly called him that twice already, but it felt amplified when he said it directly to him. It was like the difference between whispering and screaming into an amp. That combined with the fact that Mark called him pretty, and also said he belonged to Mark, Jack stood no chance, "You know what I want to do to you right now?"

"What?" Jack had no idea what would come out of Mark's mouth. He decided that whatever was said would be good for him, so why not find out? He was expecting Mark's voice to drip with sex and desire, to describe the sinful activities Mark wanted to do with him, to make Jack want to moan out loud.

"I want to take you up my bed and curl up there with you with your head on my chest so I can read to you. And I want to kiss you all over and hold you and never let you go. I want you to fall asleep on me and I'd be too afraid to move in case I wake you up. I want to protect you from everything that might hurt you, baby girl." Mark cradled him against his chest, "But we have to go slow. We need to savor this for as long as we can, I need to go slowly for you. I don't want to scare you away, but I am in way to deep to back off now. All I can do is try and not move forward until you tell me it's okay."

Jack blushed harder than he would have if Mark told him he wanted to spank him till his ass was red and fuck him over a table. Mark was running his fingers through his hair. Jack's heart needed to taste to keep living, but his brain was forced into panic mode. Jack sucked it up, took a deep breath, and grabbed Mark's face.

"Kiss me right now, Mark." Jack blurted out. He couldn't bring himself to take action himself, but he could tell Mark to. The Korean grinned and kissed him. Jack was shocked at how similar it felt to kiss a man. Of course it wasn't identical, but he couldn't really focus on much at the moment. All he knew was stubble scratching his cheeks, Mark's hands pulling him forward, tasting gum and watermelon. Where did watermelon come from? Why had Jack kept this from himself for so long? Mark pulled away, making Jack whine. 

"Don't worry little lady, lots more kisses later. Sound like fun, baby doll?" Mark brushed his hair back. Jack nodded. Mark's phone beeped at him. He picked it up and looked down at his notification, "A couple of my friends are wanting to go out in a couple days and they invited me, you wanna tag along?" 

"Why not, I don't have anything else to do." He shrugged.

~*~

Mark had set him up in a spare room he had. He was in Mark's t-shirt and basketball shorts and the smell of him was nearly overwhelming. The sheets were soft and the bed was so soft it felt like he would sink through. It was warm and peaceful, but unfamiliar. Despite all the luxury he had here, he wanted to go. He couldn't stand it anymore. He got out of bed and opened the door, Mark showed him which room was his in case he needed anything. He padded quietly down the hall and tried to open Mark's door silently, but he still woke up. He sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

"Hey, what are you doing up?" He asked, his voice was rough.

"I couldn't sleep." Jack said, "Can I come lay with you."

"Yeah," He moved over so Jack could have room, "Careful, Chica's up here too."

Jack climbed into the bed with him, Mark pulled the covers up and over him. Jack quietly thanked him.

"Do you want to talk or anything?" Mark asked, obviously still exhausted.

"No. I just wanna be with you." Jack admitted. Mark hummed and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, pulling him in tightly. He was back to sleep in seconds.

Jack felt so at home. Curled up against a lovely man's bare chest with a dog at their feet. He was safe, and happy, and relaxed. Moments later, he fell asleep.

~*~

Jack felt disoriented. This wasn't his bed or even his room, why was a dog licking his face? Then he saw Mark walk in, and it all made sense to him

"Is he up, Chica? Did you get him up? You're such a good girl, aren't you." He cooed to his dog. She jumped off the bed, tail wagging and trotted up to Mark for pets. He happily obliged, "Morning, Jack. I made breakfast if you want any. Pancakes, if you're wondering."

Jack sat up and stretched. He wandered sleepily over to him and flopped his head onto Mark's chest. He walked downstairs with him and sat at the table. Mark was wearing _Doctor Who_ pajama pants and a gray t-shirt, his hair was messy. He was gorgeous. They were just about to eat when Mark's phone started to blow up with notifications. He looked at the screen and groaned.

"They leaked." He said.

"What?" Jack asked.

"I did this photoshoot a while back and they decided to redo it after they had already finished it all up, because they didn't think it worked the way they wanted it to. Looks like someone leaked the old pictures and people are going insane." Mark handed him the phone to show him the pictures. It was enough to turn Jack's face redder than Mark's hair in the photos. His metallic shirt was a similar vibrant shade, and unbuttoned. He was wearing leather pants that left very little to the imagination, in fact you could see a massive bulge in the front. A spiked collar was around his throat. He looked at the camera with an expression that dripped with sex. 

"I see what's making everyone go nuts." He said, giving the phone back.

"Tyler says: 'Wow, did they enlarge your dick like they did with Justin Bieber?' Ethan sent me what looks like a fanfic he wrote about the picture. Amy just said 'lol' and that is an impressive amount of innuendos using nothing but emojis. Katherine is simultaneously impressed and furious with me. Oh here's a gem, 'Male stripper, Mr. Iplier, shows off the goods with recent photoshoot leak. Is it too much for news? All we know is that he's already gotten all of us ladies pregnant using nothing but his gorgeous smolder. Wish there were condoms for a face like that.' Six people on Tumblr tagged me, 4 of which either looked like they smashed their face on the keyboard or said that I made their ovaries explode. Here's some fanart." He handed the phone back to Jack to show him a recreation of the photo, "Some girl is here ranting about something to do with my dick. Someone said that I would make such a good little puppy and he wants to make my cum all over my belly. Oh wow, he goes into graphic descriptions of what he wants to do to me as his puppy. Why does he get to top? Oh, that's why. I love reading about people's reactions when I do something. It's the funniest thing."

"None of that bothered you at all?" Jack asked. Mark seemed completely unfazed.

"I literally get paid just to be sexy. If people want to 'pound into my fat ass so hard I cry with his hand around my throat', it means I get more money. And talking about me gets people's attention, which means even more money. Why would that bother me?" He shrugged and continued eating. 

"I don't know. It's complete strangers telling you how 'they want to cum down your throat so hard you choke,'" Jack looked at the phone, "That really is graphic isn't it? Anyway, it seems like it would bother most people."

"Most people aren't strippers Jack." He said. 

"I guess." Jack said. If it didn't bother Mark, it must not have been an issue. 

"Does it bother you, baby girl?" Mark asked, leaning forward.

"Why would it bother me?" Jack asked. 

"Are you jealous of them? Because you don't need to be. I'm all your's." Mark said. He tilted his head back to expose his throat. Jack wanted to stroll over and bite down and leave him covered in bruises. 

"I'm not jealous. This was literally our first date." Jack said. In truth, he was jealous. Mark was his, and no one else could have him.

"You were the one that needed to be in bed with me to fall asleep last night." Mark said. Jack turned red and tried not to pout, "I'm not complaining, in fact I really enjoyed it. I'm just stating the fact that this is moving much quicker than I think you realize. And that you missed me after I was in the next room for a few hours. I'd be surprised if you weren't jealous."

"I told you I'm not jealous." Jack looked away from him, blatantly lying. He heard the screech of the chair scraping across the floor and there was Mark, kneeling on the tile in front of him. He was sitting up on his knees so his eyes were level with Jack's chest. His hands were placed on his knees. 

"Baby girl, don't lie to me. I know you are," He nuzzled against his chest, "But you're all I want, don't worry."

He pressed upwards and kissed Jack. He could taste the syrup on his lips. Jack may have gotten a little too intense and pushed them over. Mark's hand shot out behind him to keep from cracking his head on the floor. He regained his balance and brought his hands around his waist, pulling him forward. When they finally did break apart, Jack blushed harder.

"I just made out with a stripper on the kitchen floor." Jack smiled and laughed to himself.

"After that stripper was already on his knees for you." Mark pecked his lips one more time.

"That's the most white trash thing I've ever done." He shook his head, still grinning.

"Hey, another item off the bucket list right?" Mark shrugged. 

"It's on someone's bucket list, I'm sure." Jack said.

"I think you need to make out with a stripper on every surface of this house." Mark chuckled and kissed his cheek.

"Where should we start?" Jack smiled. He hoped he could head home with red, swollen lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Tyler was the one with the collar, but I couldn't resist.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some age regression at the end of the chapter. If that makes you uncomfortable, skip the end.

Jack was walking through the park with Mark, they were meeting up with Ethan and Tyler. Jack saw a tall man with brown hair and a square face. He was talking to the blue-haired boy in the picture that Mark sent him. He wore a pastel pink sweater, another pair of tiny shorts, tights designed to look like cat faces, a choker, and heeled converse the same shade of pink as his sweater. Mark waved to them and walked over, taking Jack's hand in his own and pulling him along. 

"Is this Jack?" The blue boy asked.

"Yep, this is Jack. This is Ethan and Tyler." He pointed to them each as he said their name. Jack waved to them both.

"He's so cute." Ethan said. 

"Isn't he?" Mark said, staring at him. Jack blushed.

"Well, come on, they have giant board games. I wanted to play giant Jenga and have a giant Checkers tournament." Ethan said. 

"You want to play Jenga with the civil engineering student?" Mark asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I thought you said biomedical engineering."

"Double major." Mark explained briefly. 

"Either way, Mark does have a point. You can play, but you're not allowed to tap on blocks." Ethan said, walking in the direction of the games. He hung onto Tyler's massive arm. Mark and Jack trailed behind, still hand in hand. They reached the area of the park full of games. And Ethan wasn't kidding when he said giant. Chess pieces taller than most children. Checkers that you could easily, and comfortably lounge on. A Jenga tower as tall as Tyler. A Candy Land board that you walked along instead of using pieces. 

Ethan dragged Tyler over to the Jenga and started a Rock, Paper, Scissors battle to see who went first. Ethan lost the first round, then Mark, and finally Tyler. That meant it was Jack's turn to go first. He carefully pulled out a piece, having to walk backwards to avoid impaling himself with the massive blocks. He could just barely reach the top to place the block. He didn't know what he would do when it reached him again and he'd have to go higher. Ethan had to do the same thing Jack did and push on the pieces to see which were loose. He had an easier time reaching the top, his shoes giving him the height advantage over Jack. Tyler walked around, observing the blocks, touching a few before pulling a piece out. Mark stared at the tower for a moment, Jack could see the cogs in his head turning. He strolled over and picked his piece. Once Jack had picked his second piece, he stared at the top, not knowing what to do. He felt someone pulled him back and lift him up. Mark was holding him up on his shoulder, holding his waist to keep him from falling over. Jack put his piece at the top and Mark set him back down.

"That's not fair." Ethan whined.

"You could probably ask the beast over here to help you up too. It can't be that hard for him, you're the smallest, and he's the strongest." Mark said. 

"Please, Tyler?" He begged.

"Go get your piece and I'll help you up." Tyler sighed. Ethan smiled and cheered before running over to pull out the block. 

The game continued with increasingly more stress. Eventually, Tyler was picking up Mark so he could put the pieces at the top. No one could lift Tyler, so he was stuck trying to find other ways to reach the top when he stopped being able to reach. In the end, Ethan lost the game, but no one cared. They moved on to checkers. They all agreed on playing Mark vs. Jack, Tyler vs. Ethan. And the winner of each of those playing against each other. 

Mark and Jack would push the pieces around on the board so they didn't have to lift them. Halfway through the game, Tyler swore and started patting at his pockets. 

"What's up?" Mark asked after he pushed his piece around Jack's to take his piece. Jack worked on pushing it off the board.

"I can't find my phone." He said.

"I'll call it." Mark said. He pulled his own phone out and waited for Tyler's to ring. After a few seconds, the air was filled with the sound of "Somebody come get her, she's dancing like a stripper." Mark stared at him with the dirtiest look Jack had ever seen. Tyler shrugged and followed the song to find his phone, "I told you to change that."

"I did. It was Pony, now it's Come Get Her." Tyler shrugged.

"That's not better." Mark shook his head.

"I think it is." Tyler said. Mark rolled his eyes and resumed the game, still grumbling. Their giant checkers game came down to the last turn. Mark and Jack both had one piece remaining. They danced around each other until Mark made a mistake and Jack could take his piece. The pair sat down and watched the others play their round. Mark rested his head on Jack's shoulder.

"Tyler! No! Stop being good at everything!" Ethan shouted at him. Half his pieces were already gone. 

"I can't just stop, Ethan. That's not how it works." Tyler rolled his eyes and took another of Ethan's pieces.

"But Tyler." He whined, "I'm your boyfriend."

"That just means that after I beat you to a pulp in checkers I'm gonna go make out with you." Tyler said. Ethan put his fist in the air and pushed it forward, stomping one of his feet. Like that dance move that jack was pretty sure wasn't cool anymore.

"I'm Tyler, and I'm a total bitch." Ethan said in a singsong voice. Mark laughed and repeated the hand motion.

"I'm Tyler, and I have no legs." Mark said in the same singsong voice. They continued back and forth, laughing at the other, until Tyler's face was in his hands.

"I'm Tyler, and I have an inflation fetish."

"I'm Tyler, and I once fisted an entire family of goats."

"I'm Tyler, and I huff glue."

"I'm Tyler and I have severe hemorrhoids."

"I'm Tyler, and I have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis."

Eventually the pair had devolved into just giggling and repeated "I'm Tyler" over and over again. Jack had no idea what was happening but he was having a lot of fun.

"Jack is probably so confused." Mark said between bursts of laughter, "Sometimes I post stupid videos and one of them was a 7 second challenge. By the end we were just really stupid and giggly and somehow we just started doing that and no one knew why it was funny but it was."

"You upload videos?" Jack asked. He wanted to sit and binge watch every single one.

"Every now and then. They're all just me dicking around, somehow they've gotten pretty popular." He shrugged. He gave the name of the channel and Jack instantly subscribed. He was going to watch all of them as soon as he got home. He was just about to turn his phone off when he caught a glimpse of a video titled _boat dog_. It was 11 seconds long. He clicked on it. It was Chica in a pool on a floaty while Mark sang "Boat dog" three times in a row. The words flashed on the screen in so many colors. His first thought upon seeing it was "I picked this one." He looked up at Mark who just shrugged, he opened his mouth to say something but Ethan screamed at Tyler as he lost the game. Jack was a little more than surprised when Ethan flailed his arms, flopped onto the ground, and stuck his thumb in his mouth. Tyler and Mark both sprang into action. Did this happen often? Tyler picked him up and kissed his forehead.

"Hey, big guy. It's just a game. It's alright. I have some snacks in the car, you want to come get some with me?" Tyler smiled and ran fingers through his hair. Ethan nodded.

"Unca Mar too." He said, taking his thumb out of his mouth to speak.

"You want to ask him?" Tyler asked.

"Mar, can you come wif?" Ethan made grabby hands at Mark.

"Of course, bud. Can Jack come?" Mark asked the now very childish sounding man. Ethan nodded, "Awesome. Why don't you start heading over. We'll catch up."

He had a silent conversation with Tyler and the two walked away. Mark turned towards Jack, "Remember my friend that I told you about that I had to babysit?"

"Yeah?" Jack was confused and a little uncomfortable.

"That friend is Ethan. He's a little shy around new people, so if he freaks out that's why. Tyler's probably giving him goldfish and a juice box or something like that. It's a little weird, but come meet him." Mark held out his hand. Jack took it and walked to Tyler's car with Mark. He decided to just treat him like a child and hope that he didn't do something bad.

The trunk was open. Plastic bags full of snacks were spread out along with fruit snack packets and juice boxes. Tyler was sitting in the trunk with Ethan curled up against him. When he saw Jack, he snuggled up up against Tyler like he was trying to hide. 

"Hey, big guy, it's okay. It's just Jack. Can you say hi?" He lightly pushed Ethan forward. He muttered a quiet greeting. Jack smiled.

"Hey. What have you got there?" He asked, gesturing to the fruit snacks that Tyler was handing him.

"Princess fruit snacks." Ethan told him.

"Really? Do you have a favorite princess?" Jack asked him, trying to find something to talk about.

"Ariel. She's pretty and she's a mermaid." Ethan educated Jack.

"Hey, do you have your binky, bud? Thumbs are ick, remember?" Mark asked the little one. Ethan shook his head.

"Daddy left it at home." Ethan said, staring at Tyler.

"How dare he. Luckily for you, I brought Baby, and BaBa with me. Want me to go get them for you?" He asked. Ethan nodded, "Okay, I'll be right back."

He smiled and walked away, a few minutes later he came back holding a stuffed sheep and a baby doll. He handed them over and Jack watched as Ethan snatched them up and snuggled up with them. 

"What do you say?" Tyler asked him.

"Thank you Unca Mar. I gotta axe you somefin." He looked at Mark, "Is Jack your boyfriend?"

Jack blushed and glanced over to Mark. They locked eyes and Jack shrugged. He really wanted him to say yes, but he didn't want to make Mark uncomfortable. So he tried to seem indifferent.

"Yeah, Jack's my boyfriend." He told Ethan. 

"I gotta nother question." He said, "Can we go to your house now? I like your house."

"Sure." Mark smiled.


End file.
